


Beforus

by sagitaurus



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Beforus, Gen, Pale erikar, black/red erisol
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-04-06
Updated: 2013-04-06
Packaged: 2017-12-07 16:56:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,790
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/750851
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sagitaurus/pseuds/sagitaurus
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An unedited paragraph style roleplay set on Beforus.  Copious use of headcanons.  Suggestions of pale erikar and black/red one sided erisol.</p><p>Rped by freedomconvicted and gyroscopiccarouseller from tumblr.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Beforus

He sat, shoulders hunched, as he pried open the stupid shellfish.  He had finally found a job in the market, prying open the difficult shellfish that the owner hadn't wanted to do and so had passed on to him out of pity.  He growled as he muscled the small creature open, quickly killing it, then tossing it into a tub of slushed ice.  He hated his life.

Eridan was taking a stroll down the market to watch the diligent workers and possibly help those in need of a job. These poor lower casts. They needed guidance or they would have never survived as they do now. Luckily, Eridan was on the job to make sure everyone was living a suitable life. He looked at several booths and food stocks, buying a fruit and nibbled on it as he continued to wander. His violet eyes wandered until he found a familiar, nubby horned troll.

Eridan smiled. "Kar."

The mutant blood didn't even deign to look up.  Of all the people he wanted to see right now, Eridan and his pretentious insistence of looking out for the "lowwer classes’ self-interest" might drive him to having words.  Trolls didn't tend to like to have words with him.  Or, more accurately, they assumed he didn't have the capacity to properly debate an issue.  Fuck 'em.  "What do you want Eridan, I'm busy."

"Jeeze," Eridan said, feeling heart broken by how he snapped at him. "I just wanted to see how you were doing."

Looking up, he heaved a sigh.  "Look, as over the moons as I'd be to take time off, I actually have a job to do right now.  The first one I've had in three days.  If you catch my drift."  He was hungry and so was more irritable then usual.  Still, he was a little glad to see him after all.  "I'm done in an hour, or if I get these done sooner.  I can talk then.”

"Well then," Eridan took a seat nearby Karkat, smiling. "I shall wait here for you."

He brushed his gloved hands over his pants, giving a curt smile.

Holding back a wince, Karkat decided against protesting.  He didn't have the energy in him.  It wasn't an odd occurrence being watched while he worked, trolls often viewing him akin to a dancing monkey.  Instead, he focused his attention on finishing as fast as he could without losing any digits.

Eridan watched, blinking several times as he studied his actions. He sort of wanted to help the troll out, he would have liked to.

"Can... I help you?" Eridan asked, leaning forward.

Glancing up for the second time, he pushed his fringe out of his face, studying Eridan.  The troll wasn't dressed for it, expensive clothes and golden jewelry not made to deal with the salt water soaked creatures.  But the owner would go along with it if Eridan insisted he had told Karkat to allow him to help and so Karkat nodded.  "Fine, the knife's there, they go in that tub when you're done."

Eridan nodded. Reaching over for the knife and grabbed the muscle, beginning to pry into it. It was actually a lot more difficult then he began to take off his ring and broke the muscle.

"Shit." Eridan hissed, now removing his gloves.

This was hard.

"Hey watch what you're doing, I get paid less when they're broken."  He frowned, rising to drag the box he was using as a seat closer to Eridan.  Picking a new mollusc he held it up.  "Knife goes in here.  Run the blade through here, then twist.  You can throw the tops in this," he gave the squared off pail a kick then focused back on the task at hand.  "When it's open you cut them here, then you toss them in there."  He demonstrates and throws the muscle into the ice-tub.  "If you're too much of a wuss you can throw them to me and I'll do it.  Got it?"

"I ain't no wuss!" Eridan hissed. "I can do it no problem. Besides, I would have figured that out."

He took Karkat's advice though, managing to actually open it up without breaking the mollusc. His eyes seemed to sparkle, amazed that he accomplished that. He looked at Karkat, expecting him to give him a gold star or something, but there was no gold star forthcoming. 

After rolling his eyes at Eridan's protests he had gone back to shucking without paying the least attention to what Eridan was doing.  So long as there weren't any screams of anguished pain or breaking shells he was happy.  If the prince was expecting hugs and glitter thrown in celebration he had come to the wrong place.

Eridan's smile faltered, clearing his throat and straightening himself out to continue to open more mollusks, bobbing his head as he began to hum a tune to himself. This was actually a lot easier than he thought.

Just wait.  He would spill seawater from one all down his front or cut his fingers as soon as he let his attention wander at all.  Karkat was just waiting for it.  Part of him wanted to see that, even if it was just a little.  It was a little piece of justice in this cruelly unequal society.

"So why are you down here anyway?"

"Well," Eridan started, "I was here just to visit. I'm mostly here for work.  I have to go see Sol. You know him right?"

Oh so close to cutting his hand but nope.

"Captor?  Yeah I've seen him around.  What do you want with that asshole?"

His interest was tickled, raising his eyes as he worked.

Eridan chuckled, ripping open another. "Well it’s mostly for the empress's benefit. He's doing a study right now on some sort of top secret crap and I've been sent to fetch the info."

And Karkat's interest fled back to the hole it had dragged itself out of.

 

"And she can't see him herself?  What a surprise.  What IS it she does all day?  It must be fucking impressive to say she can't take off an hour to haul her royal ass down here among us peasants to see him herself."

"Hey, hey, hey!" Eridan said, as if Karkat was offending him. "She's awfully busy and she's doing everythin' she can to take care of this whole planet. Take it easy on the insults would you? She's a friend a mine."

"Alright, alright, keep your tights on.  I'm just saying how busy do you have to be to not give someone the courtesy of actually talking to them face to face if what they're doing is so damn important."

"Well she was going to." Eridan said, "But I... sort of volunteered."

He might have been blushing.

"You volunteered?" His voice was incredulous.  The prince of all he doth see had deigned to leave the empresses' side and come down to the depths where it smelt, quite frankly, like shit.  Karkat knew that something more was going on.

He dropped his current victim back into the container of salt water at his feet and studied Eridan hard.

"And why the hell would you do that?"

Eridan pouted, stopping his actions. "Out of the kindness of my heart."

"Uh huh, now why don't you tell me the real reason."

Eridan blushed. "Don't fuckin' worry about it."

"Holy shit you want in his pants."

"HOLY SHIT! Will you shut the fuck up?" Eridan's whole face grew purple. "Shoosh!"

He leaned forward, his voice dropping to a hiss.  "Are you yanking my bulge here?  You’re black for that assclown, really?"

Eridan waved the knife around towards Karkat. "Look, I'm still tryin' to sort this kind a stuff out. So shoosh you."

"Quit with the shooshes you're not my moirail."  He glowered and dropped his hands into the cold water, going back to work.  "So you came to see him then."

"Yeah, so what?" Eridan hissed.

"So nothing, I was just reiterating what you already said.  You don't need to get your panties jammed up your waste chute."

Eridan wouldn't stop blushing but he refused to speak about the topic now, feeling stupid to even bring it up.

Feeling he'd overstepped some bounds, he pursed his lips.  "Look, I didn’t mean anything by it okay?  If you're feeling black, I'm happy for you, okay?"

Eridan looked to Karkat finally, biting his lip before nodding.

"Thanks," He murmured. "That means a lot."

He responded with a curt smile, "no problem. Just don't start blowing shit up around here with him.  I don't want to move again."

Eridan assured. "I wouldn't want to ruin your new home."

"There's not much to ruin, this place is shit, but at least I know my way around now."

Eridan smiled. "I could relocate you some where nicer."

His head snapped up and his hands froze, looking at Eridan with pure repulsion, "fuck you."

"What?" Eridan asked, shocked. "What did I do?"

He reached out and snatched the knife out of Eridan's hand, scraping the box back with force.  Standing, he scowled, "I think you should go.  You're going to be late."  It would be obvious to anyone that he wasn't the least concerned about Eridan being late.  He was fuming.

"But Kar..." Eridan started, his fins falling back and eyes growing wide.

He didn't respond, glaring past Eridan's fin.

Eridan cleared his throat and sighed.

"Where can I wash my hands?"

He pointed to a small sink near the back of the stall.  Dropping back onto his box he wielded his knife vehemently, powering through his work.  He just wanted to be done now.

Eridan proceeded to rinse his hands, tried to make sense of what just happened but was still left baffled. He dried his hands and pulled his gloves on and his rings.

"Kar... I'm sorry for whatever I said. I just wanted to help."

"Of course you did.  Everyone just wants to help the poor defenseless mutant."  He whipped the muscle he was working on into the ice-tub.

"Kar, I didn't mean it like that. I meant it because you're a friend a mine." Eridan tried to assure.

"And how many other friends have you offered to 'relocate' exactly?  Huh?"

"None." Eridan said.

Karkat snorted and went back to work.  His point was proven.

Eridan sighed, standing up straight and beginning to walk to the exit.

"I'm sorry Kar."

There was no reply beyond a derisive snort.

"I really am," He tried again, hoping to get through Karkat.

"Yeah, I know.  Just...don't say stupid shit like that anymore, okay?"  He looked up.

Eridan sighed, scratching the door frame before nodding. "Alright."

He bit his lip, looking to his jeweled fingers before walking off.


End file.
